food from the heart of Tasmania

The heartiest beef & lentil stew

So we love Tasmania, but it’s so close to Winter and there is one thing about Tassie winters…….they’re cold!! This stew is just the thing for a cold Tassie night plus it’s the perfect thing to feed your children when undetected nutrients are required!!

The best thing about a stew is that there are really no rules, you can add or subtract ingredients and adjust doses to suit your own taste.

Ingredients

1 large brown onion chopped finely

2 stalks celery chopped finely

1 red chilli chopped finely

1/3 red capsicum chopped finely

2 cloves of garlic crushed

750 g chuck steak diced

3tbs plain flour

2 tsp dried tarragon

3-4 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup red lentils

125 g can chick peas

1 litre good quality beef stock

4 tbs tomato paste

1 cup diced carrot

1 cup diced pumpkin

1 tbs soy sauce

salt/pepper to taste

fresh parsley to garnish

Method

Dice steak removing any visible fat. Coat meat in plain flour which has been seasoned with salt and pepper and the tarragon. Fry meat in batches in the olive oil (we use an electric fry pan) until just sealed/browned. Remove from pan and drain on absorbent paper.

Add more oil to the pan and fry combined onion, celery, capsicum, chilli and garlic until soft. Return meat to pan, add lentils, stock, tomato paste, chick peas, carrots, pumpkin & soy sauce. Bring to the boil then reduce and simmer covered for up to 1.5 hours or until meat is tender. Simmer for another 20-30 mins uncovered to reduce and thicken. Add salt and pepper until seasoned to suit. Serve with white rice and fresh parsley to garnish